December 6, 2006
I have been assured by a very knowing American of my acquaintance in London, that a young healthy Child well Nursed is at a year Old, a most delicious, nourishing, and wholesome Food, whether Stewed, Roasted, Baked, or Boyled, and I make no doubt that it will equally serve in a Fricasie, or Ragoust…A Child will make two Dishes at an Entertainment for Friends, and when the Family dines alone, the fore or hind Quarter will make a reasonable Dish, and seasoned with a little Pepper or Salt will be very good Boiled on the fourth Day, especially in Winter.
Jonathan Swift’s famous essay “A Modest Proposal” is a classic example of satire. The genre remains popular today. Television shows like The Colbert Report and The Daily Show and websites like The Onion and The Brushback attract some of our most talented writers. And Borat’s been a massive box office hit.
So why is satire so popular? Why are so many people and groups interested in using humor to criticize social problems? How come something like Borat or “A Modest Proposal” is considered satire, while Scary Movie isn’t? Is satire something you enjoy, or does it just annoy you? What are some of your favorite examples of satire?
December 7th, 2006 at 6:52 pm
I think satire is the funniest thing, and the great thing about satire that amuses me so much is that, all of it is fact bases. In the movie Borat, many of the people at the Rodeo show, actually believe that when Borat will go out to sing the national anthem that he is a terrorist, and he is from Iraq. The guy before that scene told Borat to shave his moustache and also to expect that from the crowd. Many people are fond of satire for the only reason that it is true. When The Daily Show makes fun of The White House and other political procedures, all they are doing is poking fun at how stupid our mistakes are. I find that Borat can be a scary movie, because our country has so many people that act this way, and I find this to be the worst part. They actually have these believes, and all Borat is doing, is exploiting this people’s beliefs, and show how messed up our country really is.
December 7th, 2006 at 6:55 pm
I don’t really see anyone else that posted or i guess did there hw
December 10th, 2006 at 2:33 pm
[...] Satire is popular because, it is what the people enjoy to hear and laugh about. Many people like jokes such as ones that concern of other races. However, when the joke is about their race they do not find it funny just offensive. I think it is a smart idea to use humor to criticize social problems because, it is a way of getting the message out to people with out making them angry. The movie Borat is considered Satire because, it was hillarious and made fun of everything as well as taught people in America how Borat’s home town’s culture was. In my opinion, Scary Movie was not funny at all and was not a satire because, it made fun of other movies not so much of realistic social problems. I can both enjoy Satire and also find it very annoying. For example, the show Mind of Mencia drives me crazy. I believe it makes too much fun of hispanic people that it crosses the line! However, people who are not hispanic find the show to be hillarious and very entertaining. Do not get me wrong or anything because, I do laugh at hispanic jokes as long as they do not cross the line. My favorite hispanic comedian is George Lopez because, his jokes are very true about all hispanics and are very funny. The way he can make all people laugh is incredible. He is a great example of Satire because, he gets his message about the hispanic culture across without offending anyone. I form this assumption because, I never really hear of any complaints when he performs on Comedy Central. However, when I attend parties with my parents the hot topic is always about the show Mind of Mencia and how that guy should be fired and etc. [...]